05/11/2026
Today was our last packing day & delivery for the school year. It's always bittersweet. The question asked the most, is what do we do for the summer break. Since we don't have access to the schools during the summer, the first few years (13 years ago) we tried to feed our Buddies during the summer by using local churches in close proximity to the schools. Because of the hepa laws & privacy issues, we're not allowed to know who gets the bags. So, we posted on WHAT'S HAPPENING pages, & asked the parents to contact us if they were interested in getting bags for the summer. Not all Buddies signed up, but some did. We would deliver the bags to the churches & inform the parents where & when to pick up bags. This became frustrating, because many bags just didn't get picked up. So, we quit trying. 13 years ago, there just wasn't a lot of local, convenient food banks in the area. But now, so many local churches have food pantries that are very accessible if you need them.
The Backpack Buddies program has grown a lot over the last 13 years! We are currently serving 28 schools (1,058 students) in St. Clair County, Pell City & Leeds. We now use our summers to raise money to prepare for the next school year starting in August.
If our Buddies need info. on where to go to get access to food for the summer, please contact your local churches or food banks. Also, the blessing boxes are a good source for food.
We pray our Buddies have a blessed summer 💙
Our sponsors would like to thank everyone that gave money & food donations this year. And, thank you to our volunteers for the love you show our Buddies in so many ways!
We couldn't do this without you 💙
Thank you God for the many blessings and for giving us the opportunity to serve.
For more info, check out our new website .org
